Fifteen Montana breweries were awarded a combined twenty six medals at the North American Beer Awards on June 2, 2018. The competition is held in Idaho Falls each year in early June in conjunction with the Mountain Brewers Beer Fest. Organized by the North American Brewers Association, this well regarded competition is conducted as a…

The Brewers Association announced the winners of the 2018 World Beer Cup Thursday at the conclusion of the Association’s annual Craft Brewers Conference, held this year in Nashville, TN. It was the largest competition to date for the biennial event, with 8,234 beers entered in 101 beer style categories, a 25% increase over the 2016…

[Note: A version of this article first appeared in the 2017 August/September edition of the Rocky Mountain Brewing News.] Billings, Montana, bills itself as Montana’s Trailhead and standing on the edge of the City’s famed rimrocks give a perfect indication why. Seven mountain ranges dot the view, Pryor, Big Horn, Bull, Snowy, Crazy, Absaroka, and…

Bayern Brewing Co. celebrated its 30th anniversary earlier this year and its selection of authentic German beers have been a favorite of many across the Montana and beyond. Opened in 1987, the Missoula brewery first packaged its beer in 1997 with bottles of Amber and Pilsener. Bayern has been a champion of the sustainability of…

[Note: A version of this story first appeared in the 2017 August/September edition of the Rocky Mountain Brewing News.] For a brewery racking up major hardware from some of the most prestigious beer competitions, Überbrew’s best feature might be its comfortable, unassuming, inviting nature that rewards patrons with top-notch beer. That unpretentious nature begins at…

Missoula’s newest beer store, Big Head’s Bottle Shop, will hold it’s grand opening this Saturday, October 21, from 1:00 p.m. to 7:00. p.m. Formerly a part of Summer Sun Garden and Brew, the bottle shop was spun off as a separate business when the stores relocated this summer to adjoining suites at 3106 W. Broadway…

I’m a little late in sharing the news, but Montana breweries picked up more medals at the beer competition held in conjunction with the Great American Beer Festival. Winners were announced at a ceremony held in Denver, CO on October 7. Judges awarded 293 medals in 98 beer categories covering 161 different beer styles in…

The Montana Brewers Conference takes place in Missoula this week, Sept. 28-29, with two days of conference content in advance of the annual Fall Rendezvous brewfest on Saturday, Sept. 30. Conference content includes a presentation on the Brewers Association Beer Servers Training Manual by Tim Brady of Whetstone Brewing from Battleboro, Vermont, a panel on…

Beer blogger and writers from around the country will gather in Milwaukee August 4-6 to explore the city’s beer scene and hone their skills at the 2017 Beer Bloggers and Writers Conference. Perhaps best known for its lengthy history with some of the most recognizable names in beer (Miller, Pabst), Milwaukee’s local craft brewing scene…

Governor Steve Bullock paid a visit to Missoula’s Bayern Brewing Co. Monday afternoon for a ceremonial signing of House Bill 541. Approved by the 2017 Montana Legislature, the bill raises the production cap on Montana breweries who wish to sell beer for on-premise consumption from 10,000 bbls to 60,000 bbls of annual production. Governor Bullock…

Haze is in. Once perceived as a flaw, ultra-cloudy IPAs are taking the nation by storm. With a catchy name and a dedication to the craft, one Missoula, Montana brewery is turning them into a signature line of beers on par with the finest in the country. Say hello to Lupujūs, Imagine Nation Brewing Company’s…

Montana breweries again did well at the North American Beer Awards. The competition is held in Idaho Falls each year in early June in conjunction with the Mountain Brewers Beer Fest. Organized by the North American Brewers Association, this well regarded competition is conducted as a single blind sampling followed by rank ordering of the…

We were supposed to form an arch. Just prior to the start of the 3.2 Run In Remembrance, one of the many events Virginia Tech conducts each year to commemorate the tragic shootings of April 16, 2007, participants line up on the massive green space known as the Drillfied to form a symbol photographed from…

HB 541 may soon be headed for the Governor’s signature after the Montana Brewers Association, Montana Tavern Association, and Montana Beer and Wine Distributors Association agreed to a compromise Thursday morning. As proposed, HB 541 was intended to raise beer production limits from 10,000 bbl to 60,000 bbl to allow for on-premise sales of beer…